


My Hands, Your Hands Tied up Like Two Ships

by Dramaqueenliz



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-09
Updated: 2017-05-09
Packaged: 2018-10-29 20:20:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10861368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dramaqueenliz/pseuds/Dramaqueenliz
Summary: Alec Lightwood knew a thing or two about soulmates. He knew that they were rare, that sometimes something one would write on themselves would appear on the other, and that, somewhere in the world, he had one.





	My Hands, Your Hands Tied up Like Two Ships

**Author's Note:**

> Enjoy!

Alec Lightwood was fourteen when it happened the first time. He was in History class taking notes when, suddenly he felt a light pressure on the back of his left hand. He looked and found the words _“essay due 4/13”_ there. He wasn’t quite sure how to react. He had heard that sometimes, in very rare cases, those that were fated to be together could do such things. He had heard that the bond between them was so strong, their bodied could read in similar ways. From having ink appear to feeling the pain of a car accident the other was in. Alec had never thought himself special enough to have a soulmate but here was proof that maybe he was wrong. Tentatively, Alec took his pen and wrote on his palm, _“hey”_. After a minute with no reply, he went back to his notes and listened to the lecture again. He was packing up at the end of class, dejected at receiving no reply and seeing the writing vanish. Maybe he had daydreamed it up. He wasn't special and deserving of such a luxury, clearly. As he walked into the cafeteria to meet up with his brother Jace, he felt the pressure again. “ _hi? is someone there?”_ In that moment Alec could feel his jaw drop in awe. It wasn’t imagined. There really was someone out there whose soul was so connected to Alec that it reacted to Alec reaching out. Before he could reply back, Jace ran into him and launched into a spiel about the cute red head in his class. Later, he tried telling whoever it was his name but the ink would blur his name. Only a single A was left. And he didn’t get a reply back. 

 

A few months later he got a reply. He figured he would. He had done more research on soulmates and figured some things out. While soulmates were highly connected, the connection was only at its strongest on solstices  and equinoxes. These were the days that they could actually communicate and luckily his soulmate needed that reminder on the spring equinox. He also read that soulmates had to meet serendipitously. As a result, they couldn't simply write their names and their ages and where they were. They still had to happen upon each other like any other people who fall in love. Armed with this knowledge, Alec had been writing down what he wanted to discuss with his soulmate on the summer solstice in a journal for the past few months. He had barely been awake before he got a reply. 

 

 _“Hi A! I’m M! Now I know that you wont get my full name. I did some research about this. I hope you’re doing ok.”_ Alec smiled. His soulmate already impressed him by doing his own research. And the new bit of information, that his name started with M, excited Alec. 

 

“ _I researched this too! I’m mostly fine, really glad to be out of school. Now I mainly just hang out with my siblings.”_

 

Alec waited for a response. 

 

“ _Oh man I wish I had siblings. How old are they?”_

 

And so it continued on like that. Alec would answer M’s questions and ask some of his own. 

———————————-

 

Alec Lightwood was 16 when the second biggest moment of his life happened. For years he had listened to Jace talk about girls and saw him date. Yet, he could never really understand what he was talking about. Sure girls were pretty, but they didn't give him the same feelings they clearly gave Jace. He had never given it much thought until someone in his grade came out as gay. It was then that he learned that maybe, just maybe he could be too. It was difficult to accept at first. He knew that, according to his parents, being gay was an embarrassment to a family. He was able to accept himself, but knowing that his parents never would accept him ate at him. He was laying in bed thinking about it one day, when he felt the now familiar pressure on the back of his hand. He hadn't realized that today was one of the few where he could communicate with his elusive soulmate. 

“ _Good morning A!”_

 

As Alec looked down at the now familiar writing he realized that he didn't know if his soulmate was a guy. He figured that whatever mystical force bound them together would know that Alec was gay. He hoped that they would be ok with this. He needed to know. 

_“Hey. I have to tell you something.”_

 

Alec was nervous. The only other person that knew was his sister Izzy. She had been happy for him and that he felt comfortable enough to tell her. But telling someone he had never met, yet was supposed to mean so much to him, was a far more daunting task. 

_“We’re soulmates, you can tell me anything. Don’t be nervous.”_

 

 _“I’m gay.”_ There. It was done. He didn't want to beat around the bush and this was short and too the point. After five minutes of no response, Alec agonized over what could have gone wrong. Maybe whoever was in charge of soulmates made a mistake. Maybe, after all this, Alec was really not meant to have a soulmate. Right before Alec was going to call it and forget about the last two years, he felt that oh so comforting pressure on his hand. 

_“Well, good thing I’m a dude. and I’m bi.”_

And with that Alec felt the tension leave his body. With those clarifications out of the way, Alec and M went back to their usual, casual conversations. 

—————————————————

“Izzy, I’m fine. I promise you I’m not lonely. There is no need to sign me up for any dating websites.” Alec was 22 now and it had been 2 years since he last saw any writing on the back of his hand. Somehow, both he and his soulmate have forgotten to mark the all important days on their calendars. Or, maybe they both gave up hope of ever meeting. After awhile the novelty of having a soulmate wore off and the reality set in. They had no way of arranging a meet up and they would never know if they would ever meet. The last time they spoke ended with what sounded like a break up. Neither of them wanted to wait around for someone that may not enter their lives for another 20 years. If they met, it was destiny and if they never did, stayed out of reach of each other, they could find someone else to be happy with. The only problem was Alec had trouble dating. And so, Izzy had signed him for online dating services. 

 

“Alec. You have a soulmate out there. The bond you have with M is so special, so rare. You can’t just let that go to waste.” Izzy was rarely as serious as she was now. “If I were in your shoes, if I knew that someone out there was my exact perfect match, I would be chasing after them. You can’t just give up like this. Especially because they have these websites.” She turned the laptop back to Alec. The webpage was a dating service specifically for those that were confirmed to have soulmates out there. You just entered the information you knew about your soulmate, and the computer would give you likely candidates from the database. 

“Iz, theres no guarantee he’s there. What if he hasn't signed up here. Theres only so much a website can do.” Izzy continued to glare at him. She shoved the laptop towards him and walked out of his room, slamming the door behind her. He watched her go and turned back to the laptop. It was a long shot. but maybe it would pan out. He typed in everything he knew about M and prayed to whoever was out there that this would work. 

 

It was two weeks later and Alec was going on a date. He had met a man named Michael who was the same age as the M he had communicated with before. They decided to meet to see if there was a connection. Alec ordered a coffee and sat down. He looked up every time the door opened. Eventually, a blonde guy in his twenties walked in, ordered and looked toward Alec. 

 

“Hey, are you Alexander Lightwood?’ The guy had come over and was awkwardly standing behind the chair in front of Alec. Alec nodded and the guy sat down. He stuck out his hand and Alec took it. As they touched, Alec was underwhelmed. He looked into the guy’s eyes and he knew. This was wrong. He didn't feel the giddiness he felt when talking to M, he didn't feel like his life was coming together, didn't feel like a puzzle had been solved. Looking into Michael’s face he knew the other man knew as well. “Well. Maybe you really aren't A. Damn, and I so wanted this to work. Well, good luck finding your real M.” He got up and left, no less than five minutes after sitting down. 

 

Alec sighed dejectedly. This was why he didn't want to searching for his soulmate. He knew that it would lead to awkward, heart breaking situations. Seeing someone else so desperate was like looking in a mirror. Before he was somewhat happy, going on the occasional date and meeting new people. Alec was afraid that now he had begun the search it would consume him. He finished his coffee and left. He was walking down the stairs to take the subway when he felt it. He felt that feeling of warmth he would always associate with M. He looked around, but no one else appeared to be having the same epiphany. He shrugged it off and continued down. The more stairs he went down, the more intense the feeling got. He followed it until he got onto the line headed for Brooklyn. 

 

When Alec felt the warmth fade, he knew he had to get off. He went back up the stairs onto the street. Somehow, some part of him, buried deep knew exactly where to go from there. The part of his soul that was connected to M knew. It knew that its other half was close and was yearning to be reunited. Alec listened to this instinct and turned where it told him to until he got to a building. It looked like an old warehouse that had been transformed into loft space. And, before he could psyche himself out, he entered. 

 

The entry was bland, but it only served to further highlight the beauty of the man standing before Alec. He was immaculately dressed, with the most captivating dark brown eyes that were perfectly lined. The man standing before him was familiar in a way that Alec couldn't describe. Alec knew with a surety he had never yet possessed that this was M. Somehow he knew that this man was the missing puzzle piece that Alec didn't even know was incomplete. And from the way the man was staring back at Alec he knew the feelings were mutual. It was a few moments before either one could speak. 

“Its you. You're M aren't you. The one that needed the reminder on when your essay was due?” Alec could barely hear himself over the pounding of his heart. He saw the mans eyes widen in surprise. 

 

“You remember that?” At Alec’s nod he took a deep breathe. “I’m Magnus Bane. Today when I was getting on the subway, I felt that feeling, the one they always use to describe soulmates. But I thought it had to be a mistake. But, when I felt it the whole way home, I figured you must be heading this way. And now you're here. It’s actually you. Tell me, whats your name?” 

 

“Alexander Lightwood. I was on this awful date and then I felt your presence and I knew I had to find you. I’ve missed you, which is weird to say considering we’ve never met, and now I kind of stalked you and now here we are and…” Alec was cut off by a finger to his lips. He looked into Magnus’ eyes and saw understanding. 

 

“You’re here now. Thats all that matters. Do you want to come up and talk, catch up?” Alec nodded and followed Magnus inside. They talked for hours and their compatibility was clear. They never ran out of topics to discuss and they clicked. In each other they found a new sense of belonging and comfort. Alec was upset to leave, but as he hugged Magnus, he knew they would see each other again. 

——————————————-

Alec Lightwood was 24 years old when he married his soulmate. Ten years to the day of when they first talked to each other. And as he looked into the eyes of his husband, he knew that fate had made no mistakes. He was destined to have a soulmate and that soulmate was, and always would be, Magnus Bane.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr! softdario!


End file.
